Say You'll Remember Me
by CrazyLittle MissFangirl
Summary: The year 1996 was exceptionally hard for two 6th year Hogwarts students. Rae Sparks,daughter of two muggle-borns, and Draco Malfoy, son of two pure-blood lunatics. See their lives converge and diverge at unlikely moments. Do birds of a feather flock together or do the opposites attract?
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

 **COLD GREY EYES**

She ran through the corridors and climbed the stairs. Tears streaked down her cheeks and her light brown hair whipped all around her face. She reached the seventh floor. Her heavy heart was racing. She gazed at the tapestry of Barnas the Barmy who was trying to train the trolls for ballet. A genuine smile bloomed in her dark lips. Then she thought of how others would laugh at her if they came to know about her insane obsessions and ambitions. Tears welled in her eyes again. She walked across the corridor, aspiring a place to hide herself and her thoughts. A book was clutched tightly against her chest. It was wet with tears. Then the door appeared. She was astonished because she didn't expect it to turn up. Last year, she overheard Ernie Macmillan and Hannah Abbott talking about this room when she was sitting by them in their common room. But she didn't give it much of a thought until tonight.

She pushed the door open with great effort and headed air was stale with a scent of dust and magic. She found herself standing in a large, high-roofed room with tall windows. It was full of hidden room was barely lit by a thin axle of light from the windows. There were hundreds of shelf with piles of odd things. She walked towards the tallest pile and found pink coloured quills. They were broken. She picked one and twirled it between her fingers absent-mindedly as she surveyed the room. Her eyes fell on very old books, broken wands, claws of animals, damaged cauldrons, oddly colored necklaces and rings, etc.

Suddenly she felt a scathing sensation in her fingers holding the quill. The jagged edge of it was pierced deep inside her finger. She pulled it out with great effort and dropped it at once. A greenish fluid oozed from the opening followed by blood. 'Episkey' she whispered pointing the wand on the wound. It was mended. For a moment she forgot about all her worries as she stared at the cupboards then she became aware that she was carrying a book. The book's cover read "The Color Purple by Alice Walker".It brought her the memories of her family, especially her little brother. She dissolved in tears. No one knew about her mania with these muggle-books in Hogwarts. Even her best friend Mandy Brocklehurst. Usually she never shared everything with her. It was her parents who forced her to be friends with Brocklehurst, a Ravenclaw. They believed that if she had a Ravenclaw for company then she will become more productive in academics and later on become a successful Healer like her them. When she and Brocklehurst get together, the talk about nothing but their subjects.

She rambled towards the wall and plopped down against it. She opened her book and started reading it. This was the only way she could calm herself down. She always disappeared into a different world whenever she read a book. This helped her relax and escape the burdens on her read for a long time. Her stomach churned in hunger as she missed the dinner in The Great Hall. But she did not care. Later, she plunged into her own thoughts.

She was considered as an intelligent Hufflepuff. But it was because of her parents. If she ever considered knowledge as her soul then she would have been sorted into Ravenclaw, like her parents. But she was not. Others of her house considered her as a gift because they do not usually get someone who is efficient in academics. But it was the pressure from her parents that gave the results. But even after these struggles she is never the top of the year which greatly disappoints her parents. She cannot be someone else. Then her thoughts drifted to her dear grandparents. How nice it would be if if they were with with her now?

Her peace was disrupted by the creak of the door opening. Her heart skipped a beat. She held her breath. She peered through the gap between a cracked sneakoscope and a huge opal stone. A tall, pale figure was advancing towards her. She shifted in fear. 'Who is in there?' the voice boomed. At once she knew who it was. Draco Malfoy. How can she forget the cunning voice which insults her blood-status every time she is in it's presence? Before she could make any movement a jet of red light hit her as she heard Malfoy yell 'Expelliarmus'. The book that was clasped in her hand struggled away and hit Malfoy squarely on bridge of his nose. 'AARRGGHH' he bellowed in pain. Meanwhile, she managed to grab her wand from the pocket. Before she could decide between hexing or jinxing him, 'Crucio' he shouted and a jet of light raced from his wand and hit her right in the forehead as she tried to duck.

She felt her whole body become sore and there was a pricking sensation in the joints. She knew pretty well that The Cruciatus Curse was not supposed to feel that way. The pain should be intense and excruciating. 'He was not evil and able enough to inflict such a pain.'she thought.

She searched for his eyes. They were tired and bloodshot. 'You are not bad enough' she said with a small smile playing in her lips. 'What do you mean by that? You filthy Mudblood!' he spat. She decided that it is better to stay calm and said 'I am not a muggle-born Malfoy. And will you please stop wasting your energy by trying to cause me immense pain? It is nothing more than a mere tickle.' Her voice was steady though her hands were sweaty and cold. 'Stop it Spark! You are no better than a Mudblood. Having Mudbloods for parents. Don't you feel ashamed?' he asked as he withdrew his wand. She noticed tears forming in his eyes. Her heart did a flip. She never thought that a boy so rude could ever cry. Then she thought about herself and how everyone else seemed to consider her as an intelligent girl just because her parents were Mediwizards and she managed to scrape an O.W.L in every subject she chose only due to her parents' compulsion. Soon she realized that he was also in the same boat as hers.

'I do feel ashamed of them. And also yours.' she declared.

'What are you blabbering Rae Stark? Your parents are nothing compared to mine' he barked. His eyes glistened with tears as he said so. Something told Rae that she was right about his feelings.

'You would not be who you are now if it weren't for you parents. Don't you think so?' she questioned. More tears filled his eyes. He slopped through the ground, drowned in his own misery.

Her heart seemed to snap into two. She didn't want to offend him. But she also knew that she was right. Then she sat down beside him and patted his back. 'It is okay. You can always change your ways. You always have a second chance.' she whispered. He didn't slap her hand away like she imagined. He allowed her to comfort him. 'Everyone has a choice' she sighed. All of a sudden he sprung to his legs and roared 'I don't have one'. She lept back. She didn't expect him to agitate. But she didn't feel like leaving him. Some strong force seemed to pull her towards the boy who was soaked in his tears and misery.

She advanced towards him. He looked at her. His eyes were a pale shade of grey. A bit lighter than her grey eyes. She sensed so much battle and anguish beneath it. One moment he was almost a feet away and the next he was only an inch apart. She beamed into his eyes. They were magnetic. She felt as if she was reading a book again- Dreaming with her eyes open.

He gazed back. He gave her a feeling being scanned. 'How come you can understand me better than I understand myself?' he asked. His voice was sore from crying. 'Because I think I see myself in you' she replied. 'No, you don't.' he exploded. She was so shocked at first. But she knew better than to shout at him back. 'Or maybe I see a _fragment_ of me in you' she said. Her voice hinted cheer. He smiled. She has never seen him smile like this before. Whenever she thought of him smiling, it was always a sneer. But this smile was undiluted. He looked like an angel in devil's clothing.

They stared into eachothers eyes for minutes. But it seemed like hours for Rae Spark. She wanted it to last forever. It was like escaping into a new world. The air around her seemed to thicken and become misty.

'Rae Sparks. You are the most soothing Mudblood I have ever seen' he breathed. His pale lips were arced into a smile. The words were full of exhaustion. He embraced her around the neck and buried his head in her shoulders. His hair brushed her skin. She was dazed by his move. A boy who was so eager to fire her with insults minutes before was in her comfort inched back gently and sat against a cupboard and his head on her lap. She bent a bit to look at his face. He was asleep. He looked like a Pale angel to her. His face was twisted in a confused expression.

She began to dream about what was happening. Her thoughts drifted from him to her parents and the letter she got that evening. Fat tears slipped from her eyes. It fell right on Draco's head. He didn't twitch or show any sign of acknowledgement. She glanced another look at him and sighed, thinking of how things change over a short span of time. Her eyelids drooped. She slipped into a world of grey.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

 **THE LETTER DREAM**

 _She was heading near a moor. The shadows of trees around her were twisted in a brutal sort of way that it gave her shivers. As she moved on, her led sank deep into the soil. It was like quicksand. She was as pale as her grey eyes. Her dark lips were drained out of blood._

 _She slipped over something and fell face first. She pushed her hands against the ground for some thrust but it sank deeper. She turned her around, as much as her posture allowed, to find the object she slipped over. It was a shriveled hand, as white as parchment. She then observed its ring finger. A gleaming golden ring with a fat ruby stone on top of it. The red stone was topped with a shock of gold. Massive realization flooded over her. The symbol of the Sparks._

' _GRANDMA!' she thundered._

 _The hand seemed to stir. The forest which was around her twirled and whirled. Her body slipped from the ground and drowned deep into the soil. Her mind was full of the picture of her grandmother's hand. Was it actually her grandmother's? Abruptly she plunged on something moist and slippery. It seemed to wrap itself around her like a coiling snake. She thrashed around like a child throwing tantrum. She gasped for more air. Her already pale face was turning green now. She suddenly was reminded of all her fears. Her worst horror was insects. Immediately a swarm of bees buzzed towards her. 'Think of the devil' she thought._

 _Then the mechanisms of her mind seemed to click on the right place. She thought hard…'DEVIL'S SNARE!' she squalled. She allowed her body to relax and let herself fall. The coils untied itself and made her enough room to continue her fall._

 _She hit the ground hard. A sharp pain went through her spine. She winced. This place was darker. As her eyes got adjusted to the lightlessness, she noted a pale figure bent over something. It was wearing an expensive black cloak. Its fingers were jeweled with extravagant stones. Curiosity won over sanity, she moved towards it, trying not to make a sound. Yet it managed to hear her. It looked up. His face was bloodless yet his lips were as red as roses. His features appeared to be chiseled out of white stone by a skillful sculptor. Fangs as sharp as newly sheathed daggers protruded out of his mouth as he smiled menacingly. Her eyes traveled towards the body lying beneath the vampire. She observed the light brown hair, just like hers, on him. He stirred and groaned in pain, unable to muster any more noise. The shock drained the leftover blood in her. Recognition streamed into her heart, spreading icy coldness throughout her chest. She was unable to make any movement. She felt nauseated. Not because of the sight she just encountered but because of the swift flow of anger, aghast, devastation and desperation. Suddenly she felt light-headed. Her legs seemed to turn into the silvery, cloud-like substance that fills the pensieve. Conspicuous to the laws of the nature, it was not able to hold her body's weight. She strived not to blackout. But she could not resist it._

 _Instead of the world turning blank, a band of flashing light blinded her eyes. When her eyes adapted to the brightness she found the vampire dead, her brother fully alive and_

 _Draco. But he was not the hollowed faced boy with lines of misery who slept on her lap. He was a radiant angel with clean-cut face. He was dazzling a dauntless smile._

 _Tears of gratitude gushed out of her eyes. 'Thank you….thank you so much..t-thank y-you..' she hiccoughed over the pouring tears. She wanted to rush to him at once and embrace him. But something about his appearance curbed her from doing so._

 _Before she could do or utter anything else he turned his back to them and moved away from the place. Her brother didn't seem bothered at all. But her heart was racing like the horse Arion from the Greek mythology._

' _Where are you going Draco? Come back!' she wailed in vain. The boy moved without a slightest turn of his head. She dropped to the ground and dissolved in the river of hot tears pouring from her eyes…_

She woke up with a jolt. She turned her head around to find herself in the Room of Requirements, alone. Her eyes searched for the white blond boy. But there was no sign of him. 'Did she imagine all these or did Draco actually fall asleep on her?' she wondered. The former seemed more reasonable. Yet she knew deep within her that Draco, a pure-blood maniac and a cruel bully, found her comforting.

She visualized the dream she had. She knew perfectly well that it was just the reflection of the tormenting letter her parents sent her. It read that if she wants her brother to be free of the werewolf and vampire attacks that are taking place lately and if she wished to defend her muggle grandparents, she should leave Hogwarts and go into hiding with the rest of the family. But it was impossible for her. It was in Hogwarts where she learnt about her true self. It was in Hogwarts where she felt the importance of the wizarding community in the life of the Earth. She didn't want to betray the place which gave her abundance of erudition. Hogwarts was like a mother to her. A mother who never thinks twice before feeding her child. Will anyone abandon their own mother? She definitely won't. She doesn't have to be a Gryffindor to be brave in a situation like this.

In addition to all this, she has another strong reason to stay back at Hogwarts now. Draco Malfoy. She can't help but be empathetic towards him. The image of the tear stained boy would never fade away from her mind. It gashed a deep wound in her heart. The only medicine to the wound is Draco himself. Not the Draco with the helpless and sullen face but the Draco with the angelic smile.

But where was he now? She stood up and searched the room frantically. There was no sign of him. Then, she viewed the tall windows. Morning light filled the room. She realized that someone by now must have grasped her disappearance. She hurried out of the room. Her fingers were wrapped tightly around her redwood wand. She was not able to round up an alibi as her mind was already filled with the thoughts of Draco Malfoy. She left her muggle written book in the Room of Requirements. She didn't forget to take it. She left it there purposefully because now she had a better book to read. A book full of misery and mystery. The book of her pale angel.


End file.
